As the Scriptures say, 'God opposes the proud but favors the humble.' So humble yourselves before God (James 4:6,7 NLT)
As the snow begins to recede in the Gethsemane Prayer Garden each spring, the first flower to show itself is the primrose. Their splashes of color sends a joyous message which continues from late March through June. Consistently people stop me to speak in some way about the brilliant colors yet their very short 6-inch height. To me, it reminds me of the favor that the Lord grants to those that exhibit humility.
We have a small but vibrant area dedicated to our Pacific Giant Primroses. The names of our individual cultivars were never recorded – it is the bold red, violet, yellow, pink, blue, and white pigmentation with brilliant yellow centers that brought us to the decision to purchase each one.
Primrose
(Primula X polyantha) generally prefer a shady location. We grow ours in the full sun until July when a large cluster of Russian sage adds considerable shade to the primrose bed. At that point, most visitors never see the primrose as it is hidden by the much larger Russian sage. That is the way of humility, is it not?
Every four or five years we have to replenish our inventory of primroses. Possibly some get pulled by the naive volunteer that is zealous to weed. Recently we discovered that spider mites may be attacking the primrose, possibly causing the weaker ones to die off. We will spray – I do not believe that humility means we allow ourselves to be eaten alive.
We have a small but vibrant area dedicated to our Pacific Giant Primroses. The names of our individual cultivars were never recorded – it is the bold red, violet, yellow, pink, blue, and white pigmentation with brilliant yellow centers that brought us to the decision to purchase each one.
Primrose (Primula X polyantha) generally prefer a shady location. We grow ours in the full sun until July when a large cluster of Russian sage adds considerable shade to the primrose bed. At that point, most visitors never see the primrose as it is hidden by the much larger Russian sage. That is the way of humility, is it not?
Every four or five years we have to replenish our inventory of primroses. Possibly some get pulled by the naive volunteer that is zealous to weed. Recently we discovered that spider mites may be attacking the primrose, possibly causing the weaker ones to die off. We will spray – I do not believe that humility means we allow ourselves to be eaten alive.
Spray... or Pray? :-)
ReplyDeleteLove this newly found site! (We seem to share all of the same passionate hobbies...) I, a native Ohioan, discovered this site attempting to locate Biblical hyssop for my own backyard northern California garden... of which I am proud:-) --Any suggestions of where to procure some? As I understand it, there are 2 varieties: I would imagine it was a branch of the woody variety that the crucified Christ was offered the vinegar wine upon... (mommyrose97@gmail.com)
Mommy Rose: There are many types of hyssop. Biblical plant scholars have differing opinions on which modern plant was the hyssop of the time of Jesus. The most common thought is a white flowered variety that is common in Egypt. I suspect that the climate of northern California is not the same as Egypt, but certainly better that upstate New York where I live.
ReplyDeleteIn any case, you can find some hyssop varieties at Park Seeds
http://parkseed.com/search.aspx?sb=RANK&ss=hyssop
Best of everything in your endeavors,
Tom